Bot Basics

Beginner’s Guide to Bots

Everything you need to know about the past present and future of bots. Whether you're thinking about developing a bot or just want to learn more about bots, this guide will teach you how bots were invented, the basics of how bots work, what bots can do, and where bots are developed and published.

April 27, 2018

What are bots?

Chatbots, or bots, provide automated services through messaging apps and websites. They're able to respond to questions through text or voice and provide real-time answers.

When you use Google Assistant, Alexa, and Siri, you are interacting with chatbots. So are many pop-up box conversations on retail websites and search results for local weather, restaurants, and sports. Simple bots offer all kinds of basic information, and advanced bots can carry on full conversations.

Every bot can be customized to fit a company’s or creator’s brand. As the technology evolves, bot interactions become more accurate, helpful, and humanlike.